The present invention relates in general to a tool that aids in forming and marking pieces of material that are used in crafts such as, but not limited to, quilting or scrap booking so that the pieces of material can be easily shaped and accurately joined together.
Common problems quilters experience include sewing consistently accurate seam allowances and trimming points when the material is formed to include acute angles such as, but not limited to, forty-five degree angles. It can also be difficult to accurately align two pieces of material to be sewn together when the pieces of material include different angles. Another problem quilters experience is that they must start and stop sewing exactly where the seam lines cross when joining one piece with two others that form an acute angle, commonly referred to as a set-in-seam.
The most common seam allowance recommended by those skilled in the art of quilting is one to two thread widths less than one-quarter inch, commonly known as a scant quarter inch. To measure and mark accurate scant quarter inch seam allowances quilters generally use the lines on a ruler. There are many problems that can lead to inaccurate and/or inconsistent measuring or marking of scant quarter inch seam allowances. For example, without limitation, since rulers are designed for measuring, they have multiple lines, none of which mark the scant quarter inch that quilters need. Also, the quilter must repeatedly find the right line on the ruler and then determine where to line the edge of the fabric up relative to the line for a scant quarter inch and do that consistently for every piece. Another problem with rulers is that a line does not give a definite point with which to line up the mark. Users can line up to the inside, outside or right in the middle of a line, all of which can seem correct.
Common tools for point trimming include individual point trimmers with lines printed on them to act as guides for accurately lining up material to trim points. There are also individual templates, one each for trimming the points off half and quarter square triangles. There are also tools for the set-in-seam problem. One tool uses lines as guides, and another tool is formed with several angles. Both include holes to mark where the seam lines should intersect. Having multiple lines or angles on one tool or needing multiple tools for the same job is confusing and adds to the number of tools the user must manage. Current tools are also limited to the number of lines printed on them or the angles into which they are formed.
In view of the foregoing, there is a substantial need for an easily handled tool that combines all of the aforementioned features and that assist in marking and trimming pieces of material so the pieces of material can be easily and accurately joined together.
Unless otherwise indicated illustrations in the figures are not necessarily drawn to scale.